Datamonitor Group’s Pack-Track Innovation of the Monthaccolade goes to Ceethree’s iO Natural Energy Drink. The distinctive packaging has recently been introduced to the Swedish market in a highly unusual cubical bottle.
It is the first commercial use in Europe of the Cubis bottle, an extrusion blow-molded 250-mL high-density polyethylene cube-shaped bottle. It has a triangular flip-top closure on one corner and minimalist graphics applied in the form of a shrink sleeve. Not only does the pack shape ensure stand-out on the shelf, but it makes it highly efficient from a retail and logistics viewpoint – the bottles are easily stackable and optimize space utilization, unlike conventional cylindrical bottles where there is a lot of wasted space around the pack.
Pack-Track Packaging Insights Director Andrew Streeter comments, “You cannot help but admire the difference in this drink pack, which is a bottle but does not look like a bottle to the consumer. On the plus side it is cube-efficient and engages the consumer in a different way to a bottle, with some neat design features to hold the pack. On the down side it is tricky to comfortably drink out of and I wonder if, with a more assertive branding graphics interpretation to exploit its special shape, stand-out on shelf would be stronger and more decisive.”
“We should not lose sight of the good material distribution achieved in the structure and how, coupled with the [cubical] shape, this makes for a strong construction,” continues Streeter. “There is a message for everyone here, in that packaging is a creative medium and the market can always be challenged by innovation, plus no doubt some determination!’
Source: The Datamonitor Group,www.datamonitor.com
